Loket Travel Guide

 CatherineReichardt Says:  It will probably come as little surprise to discover that the church close to the castle is dedicated to St Wenceslas, who is the patron saint of the Czech Republic. In the English speaking world, Wenceslas is probably best known as the inspiration for the Christmas carol... 

 globetrott Says:  This is the old entrance of Loket / ElbogenToday there is a parking for just 10 cars, and the ONLY modern building I found in Loket. It seems to be a school and looks terrible, but at least it has a statue of Goethe as well in front of it.The small street between the 2... 

 globetrott Says:  " Heute waren wir in Elbogen das über alle Beschreibung schön liegt und sich als ein Kunstwerk von allen Seiten betrachten lässt. "Today we have been in Loket, that is built in the most beautiful way and may be viewed from all sides...This is what Goethe has written in his... 

 globetrott Says:  Loket is a rather small town of maybe 2000 inhabitants, and walking all its side-streets is rather easyly done within 1 hour.Try at least to walk the town-square to the very end at the old wall-tower, so you will not miss these great old buildings. 

 globetrott Says:  The castle was first built in the 13th century and rebuilt various times later-on. So you may still see roman,gothic,renaissance and baroque style inside of its walls.Goethe's precious collection of rare minerals was taken here and disappeared after WW II. 

 3 Opinions

 globetrott Says:  I had lunch there on the lovely terrace facing the townsquare.I had venison-ragout - not a really great choice, as it was completely DRY and without any sauce and for a much more " western price " than in other places in Loket.BUT It was mainly the name Goethe that attracted... 

 globetrott Says:  Where to find Loket / ElbogenLoket / Elbogen is not far from Karlovy Vary / Karlsbad, and when you click on my picture, you will see the little " photoshop -map " I made, so you may get an idea, where to search for Loket on your own map.It is just about 5 Km south of the... 

 globetrott Says:  Below the castle you may walk down to the river in various terraces and watch the plenty of paddlers passing by.On the other shore there was something like an open-air-stage, but I could not find out, what kind of performance that was made for. 

 globetrott Says:  A big bridge for modern car-trafic was added to enter the town in modern times. All the major trafic is going there in and out, and coming from Karlsbad / Karlovy Vary you will have to get completely around the river in order to get o this bridge. 

 globetrott Says:  I saw this old code of arms on the townhall. I am not sure, if this is the official code of arms of the town, as Loket is much older than 1686.anyway, it looks great with the lion & the big key." Elbogen " is the german word for " elbow " and it was also used as a german... 

 globetrott Says:  I am not sure, if everybody has heared of Goethe before - I may imagine in other continents people might know just the " Goethe Institutes " - named after this most famous german Poet." Dr.Faustus " was his most famous drama, but he was as well a politician,scientist and... 

 globetrott Says:  It seems that tourism is very low in Loket / Elbogen. A lot of money was invested, but considdering that I was there on a sunday in july 2003, the town was almost empty and all the restaurants had a lot of free space .It is a pity, as it would also be really a cheap... 

 globetrott Says:  The interior of the church is overloaded with wonderful sculptures and paintings. Have a closer look for the great chandelier made of Bohemian crystal glass.You may enter the church without any restriction during the day, there is not even the typical "NO photography" - sign... 

 globetrott Says:  The church of LoketRight below the castle you may see the church of Loket that dates back to 1240, but was rebuilt from 1721-1733.It has a great interior and is well worth a visite !